Hi everyone! It’s Kathryn from AllFreeKnitting.com. Margo was gracious enough to let me talk about one of my favorite topics with you today – essential tips and tricks for beginner knitters.

Diving into the knitting world for the first time can be a bit of an overwhelming experience. There are materials to buy, stitches to learn, and patterns to decipher. Where do you even start?

Fortunately, there are a few key pieces of advice all beginner knitters can learn in order to make their experience more enjoyable and more productive. Sure, I could tell you how to knit and purl or the difference between linen stitch and basketweave stitch, but oftentimes, the most valuable beginner knitting tips have nothing to do with actual techniques.

Let’s dive in and take a look at the tips and tricks every fiber enthusiast should consider.

1. Carefully Curate Your Knitting Supplies

When you’re first starting out, it’s extremely tempting to head to the nearest craft store and stock up on every knitting material available. However, it’s important to practice some restraint and wait until you’ve been knitting for a while before investing in certain tools.

For instance, as you knit, you’ll discover whether you prefer bamboo to aluminum needles and what notions are most useful. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different types of needles, try out knitting friends’ notions, and see what you like best before investing your money.

With so many gorgeous skeins of yarn on the market, it’s very tempting to buy the prettiest, most glittery one you can get your hands on. However, these fancy yarns are not beginner friendly. It’s best to start with an inexpensive, synthetic worsted-weight yarn in a light color. Working with a light color helps you see the stitches more easily so it’s obvious when you’ve made a mistake.

When you’re following a pattern and you want your finished knits to come out a certain size, it’s essential to knit a gauge swatch. A gauge swatch is the only accurate way to know how big or small your project will be.

You’ll notice the instructions of every knitting pattern include a recommended gauge. This number indicates how many stitches equal one inch of fabric. Your goal is to match the gauge, because even slight variations can make a big difference in your finished product.

Even though it’s tempting to skip this step and dive straight into the pattern, train yourself to always knit a gauge swatch in order to save yourself a lot of time and frustration down the road. You may think it’s enough to use the recommended yarn and needle size, but your individual tension may be different, so the only way to make sure you have the right gauge is to knit a swatch.

4. Read the Entire Pattern Before You Start to Knit

Before you cast on your stitches, take the time to read the pattern all the way through. Make sure you understand the instructions and imagine yourself knitting each step in order to visualize the final product.

Does each step make sense? Do you understand the overall construction? Do you know how to do the required skills? If not, take the time to think it through and ask yourself why the pattern says to do this or that.

Once you know which parts of a pattern are essential and which ones can be altered (or ignored completely), you can start making changes to better suit your personal preferences. Think of a knitting pattern as a secret code and once you crack the code, you can use that knowledge to make more informed choices.

5. Breathe and Relax

It’s easy to become frustrated when you’re learning a new skill and knitting is no different. Before you throw your needles across the room in frustration, take a moment to breathe and relax. It may be beneficial to set your project aside for a few hours or even a few days and revisit it with a clear mind.

Knitting when you’re wound up can negatively affect your tension and cause your stitches to tighten. Spend some time getting in the zone before you dive into your project by listening to relaxing music, drinking some soothing tea, meditating for a few minutes, etc.

At the end of the day, it’s important to remember knitting is a fun hobby that should bring you joy, so resist the urge to become completely overwhelmed. Sometimes, a simple change in perspective is all you need to remember why you’re a fiber enthusiast in the first place.

So there you have it! These five tips for beginner knitters are a great place to start if you’re interested in successfully exploring the wonderful world of fiber arts.

Thanks to AllFreeKnitting.com for these helpful tips! Looking for a comprehensive collection of free knitting patterns? Look no further! AllFreeKnitting.com has one of the best collections of free knitting patterns for you to enjoy. Happy knitting!

Gosh I can’t believe it’s been so long since I’ve posted a new knitting pattern! But I’m back at it and what I wanted to share with you was this simple, satisfying pattern that you can finish in an evening! The Minty morning headband features cabled edges, and a middle braided cable.

I only had a little bit of this colorway in Vanna’s Choice yarn left, so I knew I wanted to make something small. If you’re up for a quick, fun, fashionable project, let’s get started!

As you’ve probably guessed, I’ve been going through a little bit of a cowl phase. I love how easy and quick it is to knit up a 1 skein cowl. So I may have gotten a little carried away, but here’s another one. I bought 3 50g. skeins of Karabella Margrite Bulky yarn on ebay for $18 over a year ago- and I decided it was time to stop hoarding the cashmere! Unfortunately, the yarn I used for this cowl is discontinued, but I recommend replacing it with a soft alpaca blend.

I was overthinking it- afraid to use up “the good yarn”. This cashmere blend yarn is luxurious- it doesn’t need a complicated pattern, just something elegant and simple. This textured cowl is so easy to make, and the pattern is one of the easiest to memorize that I’ve found! I was able to knit and watch TV without messing up once (which is something I’ve never been able to say.)

If you know how to knit in the round, knit, and purl, then you can make this deceptively simple cowl!

(this post contains affiliate links to products I use and recommend to my readers.)

I’m currently working on a brand new website, full of brand new patterns, as well as an e-book! I’ve got my hands full of yarn and web designing, so it might be a little quiet on the blog for a while. These fingerless gloves should tide you over, but if you’re looking for more fun, you can always check out the patterns I have available!

I call this one the “crown headband” because it’s so big, it kind of looks like a crown. Kind of a winter interpretation of the flower crown trend. It’s a really simple pattern, and is a great way to practice cables! I get compliments on mine a lot, and am currently knitting some in other colors as gifts (for myself).

Note: This pattern starts with a provisional cast on with waste yarn, and is finished with a 3 needle bind off. If you prefer to just sew the seams together at the end, then just cast normally with your working yarn.

Materials:

Us Size 13 knitting needles

Cable needle or DPN

Darning needle for sewing seams and/or weaving in ends

waste yarn (you can just use some yarn from the skein of hometown USA, or use a contrasing color super bulky yarn to make it easier to see)

Repeat rows 1-8 until desired length- (about 18-19 ” is good for a 20-21″ head, this headband will stretch when worn a couple times. )

Remove waste yarn, and place stitches on needle. Use 3 needle bind off to seam headband. You can watch a great video on how to do a 3 needle bind off here. If you chose not to use the provisional cast on, then just sew the seams together.

One of the things I love about crochet is the ability to create a long chain and crochet all the way across. I wanted a scarf that was high-fashion, yet inexpensive and easy to make, ridiculously long, and dramatic. I came up with this very simple pattern that works for worsted weight yarn- and love the results! It’s a great T.V. crochet project, with it’s long rows, and simple stitches. It is also surprisingly quick to make since you only turn your work 8 times! The scarf wraps around 3 times, and is still dramatically long!

I needed some fresh, spring photos for my ‘Design Your Own Crescent Shawl’ knitting pattern, and we were lucky to have an 80 degree day in between thunderstorms last week! After this long winter, I’ve never been so happy to have sun-burn!

I’m loving this triangle crochet stitch! I wanted a light scarf for these cool May- and probably June- days. Damn Ohio! I was lucky enough to get out with my photographer friend Carrie for some pro- photos that turned out absolutely dreamy! You can check out Carrie’s site here. I used worsted weight yarn, and a size US I9 (5.5mm) hook. But you can do this pattern in any multiple of 4+2 stitches, so feel free to use any weight yarn you like!

Yarn: I Love This YarnColorway: Iced Violet

Hook Size: I9 (5.5mm)

(Gauge not important for this pattern)

Begin Pattern:

Ch 30 (or a multiple of 4+2) sts.

Row 1: Sc into 2nd ch. from hook and into each remaining ch; ch 1, Turn.

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Hi! I'm Margo. I love pulling loops through other loops, and sharing my patterns! I'm a yarnaholic, and love pairing a nice merlot with any knitting project! I am also an Etsy shop owner, jewelry designer, and entrepreneur. I hope you enjoy my blog, and come back often to see what's new!

Disclosure: I use affiliate links throughout my site. I may earn a small commission for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial, and/or link to any products or services from this website. Your purchase helps support my work in bringing you free knitting and crochet patterns. Thank you for reading, and supporting an independent designer!